A Bit of French with A&C Podcast Ep.10 : Les Exams

Here’s some useful vocabulary featured in this podcast for you to learn and/or review:

• • redouter [quelque chose] = to dread/apprehend [something]
  • résonner = to resonate
  • réviser = to review/revise/study
  • une fiche Bristol = index card [re: lined, smooth card paper made in Bristol, UK]
  • une fiche cartonnée = an index card
  • un surligneur = highlighter pen
  • des allers et venues = back and forth
  • millimétré(e) = meticulous [lit. millimetered]
  • un Tipp-ex = white-out
  • un effaceur = a fountain-pen ink eraser
  • une rage de dents = a raging toothache
  • le bac de philo = Baccalaureate philosophy exam
  • une dent de sagesse = wisdom tooth
  • une douleur fantôme = phantom pain
  • comme par hasard (exp.) = wouldn’t you know / coincidentally

• l’angoisse de la page blanche = fear of writer’s block
• faire une nuit blanche (exp.) = to have a sleepless night
• tout faire péter (exp./fam.) = to crush it [lit. to blow everything up]
• un examen blanc = a mock exam
• le bac français = Baccalaureate French exam
• un corpus établi = an established collection/corpus of texts
• tomber sur un texte/sujet = to end up with a text/topic
• s’en sortir très bien = to cope/get on with it very well
• l’oral d’espagnol = Spanish oral exam
• un examinateur = an examiner
• maîtriser = to master
• une épreuve = an exam/test [part of a series of tests for an overall exam]
• je n’en reviens pas (exp.) = I can’t believe it
• avoir hâte de [faire] = can’t wait to [do]
• afficher [quelque chose] = to display [something] (on a wall)
• une mention (Baccalauréat) = an honours distinction awarded to students who achieve high average grades, typically 12/20 or above
• décrocher le bac (fam.) = to pass the Baccalaureate exam
• (Baccalauréat) être au rattrapage / les épreuves de rattrapage = a “resit” or “catch-up” round of the exam, available to students who score between 8/20 and 9.99/20, allowing them to raise their grade to the 10/20 pass mark without repeating the year
• jouer des coudes [re: Celine says “donner des coudes”] (exp.) = to push one’s way through
• marquer [quelqu’un] = to leave a mark on [someone]
• une anecdote croustillante = a juicy story
• une pépite = a nugget, a gem

Proper noun:

• Baudelaire [re: French poet from 19th century]
• Charles Aznavour [re: French-Armenian crooner]

Ready for a little challenge? Listen out for this sentence taken from the podcast:

“Et du coup, on a commencé l’examen, on a fait ce qu’on pouvait, on a relu…
Alors, toi Aurélie, du coup, tu as passé plein d’examens […]
Est-ce qu’il y a un examen que tu as aimé […] ou que tu as complètement raté ?“

To help you practise your grammar, test yourself with this special Notebook comprising the following Kwiziq lessons related to this sentence:

• Conjugate regular -er verbs (+ avoir) in the compound past in French
• Conjugate faire (+ avoir) in the compound past in French
• Ce que (vs ce qui) = what/which (French Relative Pronouns)
• Conjugate voir/devoir/pouvoir/boire/croire/savoir/lire/plaire/taire (+ avoir) in the compound past in French
• Passer can be used with avoir or être in compound tenses depending on its meaning in French (Le Passé Composé)
• Que = Whom/which/that (French Relative Pronouns)
• Differences between French and English usages – Passer un exam vs To pass an exam

Want to practise some French grammar while enjoying an exam-themed conversation? Then you’re going to love this Fill-in-the-Blanks exercise 😍:

• Souvenirs des examens (Mixed Conjugations A1 to B1)

Want to practise your French knowledge further? Have a go at these exam-themed Kwiziq exercises:

• Reading – L’oral de français en Première (B1)
• Dictée (Premium subscribers only) – Les matins d’examen (A1)
• Writing Challenge (Premium subscribers only) – My plan for the day of my exam (B2)

Not Premium yet? Now’s a great time to upgrade! You’ll get unlimited exercises, kwizzes and multiple notebooks to help you stay organised and make progress faster, plus Weekend Workouts exercises every week.